Tips for sending messages to Primary Care of Shelton's portal

Primary Care of Shelton implemented the the Portal through Athena Health in early 2018 to provide another option for our patients to contact our office and Dr Asgari (regarding non-urgent medical questions) at a time that is convenient for all.

Our goal is not to replace the personal connection formed when visiting us in person, but to enhance the provider-patient relationship with an additional communication vehicle.

Valuable tips for getting the most benefit from the Portal:

1. Please keep your message short and to the point, and please call 911 if there is a medical emergency.This feature is intended for non-urgent and relatively uncomplicated, simple messages that do not require an immediate response. If you feel that you have an urgent medical need, please contact the office directly or call 911. It is best to send messages that are brief, straightforward, and focus on only one medical problem or concern. Here is an example of an uncomplicated, simple message: “Dear Dr. Asgari, I will be running out of my cholesterol medication in about three weeks. Should I have my blood checked before I have it refilled?”

2. Please arrange for a visit if you have a complex question.Your provider’s office may respond that it is more appropriate for you to make an appointment or to use the OTTO for Tele-Health to discuss your concerns. Even if your message seems simple and straightforward to you, the office may still feel that it is best for you to schedule an appointment one way or another. Although the Portal can help resolve many small problems or concerns, it is important to understand that not all medical questions can or should be addressed through messaging. Please note for new symptoms you will be asked to arrange for an in-office appointment or to arrange for a Tele-Health visit.

3. Dr Asgari or a member of our team will respond to your message within 1-2 business days.We ask that you do not call the office to inquire about the status of the message if it is still within that two business day timeframe from when it was submitted. You may get a response from a member of the healthcare team other than Dr Asgari.

4. This feature is only available for patients who have been seen recently.If you have not been seen in the past 12 months, please call and come in. Be sure that we are eager to fit you in, and an office visit and examination within this time-frame is essential , in order for us to be able to provide accurate responses to medical questions through the Portal.

5. Please do not use the Portal for questions related to anyone other than yourself.Since all information entered within your Portal account will become part of your permanent medical record, it is important that you do not use your personal Portal account to send a message related to another family member who is not recognized as registered family member. If you have an established Registered family member portal account, you’ll need to initially access the appropriate patient Portal account . Once you are in the correct account, you may use the the Portal feature as you do for yourself.